Forum readers might remember a debate about Untung Surapati between myself and PCP members...
Well, today I learned that I was wrong when I said that there could be no Untung Surapati in Kebumen because he was killed in Bangil and his remains were thrown in to the sea. This is what Denys Lombard, Pramoedya Ananta Toer, and others say.
However, today I found (in todays Kedaulatan Rakyat paper in Yogya) that there is a village in Kebumen called Clapar, and locals there believe they hold the grave of Untung Surapati including some pusaka.
According to a village elder, Suparjo, who claims to be the 7th generation descendant, this Untung Surapati was in his childhood named RM Sudarmadji and was the son of Sunan Amangkurat Mas of Mataram (this is different from the Untung Surapati of history).
However, these people in Kebumen really believe that their Surapati is the same as the historical Surapati, and that the grave in Clapar, Kebumen, really holds his body, and that there are descendants of his in this village.
So on this opportunity I would like to apologize to William Sanders and PCP members and acknowledge that there is a Untung Surapati grave in Kebumen. Although I can't believe that there is no confussion here, and I realize that Jawa is a surreal place, I must admit that Sanders was not making things up nor was he mistaken when he relayed the information given to him that Untung Surapati is buried in Kebumen.
However, this information creates more questions ... because no one else has ever said that Untung Surapati was the son of Amangkurat Mas. Is it the same person as the Balinese slave famous in colonial time novels?
For me, I would like to lay this issu to rest untill more information emerges and historical research is conducted. I would like to invite Sanders and PCP members to debate other matters, like, for now, Jawa keris fighting.
Salam hangat,
Rangalana
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